This invention pertains to round balers with a pick-up assembly that includes a conveying rotor for moving cut crop material from the ground to a bale forming chamber. More specifically, the present invention pertains to an improved pick-up drive assembly for the conveying rotor that allows the rotor to be rotated in reverse to the normal direction of rotation so as to unplug impacted cut crop material from the rotor. More particularly, because the pick-up drive assembly has a reverse control apparatus for selectively reversing the direction of rotation of the rotor.
Typical round balers (also referred to simply as a xe2x80x9cbalerxe2x80x9d), such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,209,450 to Naaktgeboren et al., are agricultural machines that pick up a cut crop material from the ground and form it into a compacted round bale in a bale forming chamber. When the bale has been sufficiently compacted to a desired density or a desired size depending on the baler construction, bale density or bale size sensors, as is appropriate, send signals to a controller that subsequently sends a signal to an operator""s panel to stop forward motion of the baler so that a bale wrapping operation can be performed, wherein the formed bale is wrapped with netting or twine to produce a completed wrapped bale.
As is conventionally known, the baler has a pick-up assembly located on the front of the baler that has a pick-up that serves to pick-up cut crop material, such as hay, straw, grass and the like, from windrows on the ground. The pick-up assembly then conveys the cut crop material with a conveyor, such as a rotating conveying rotor, into a bale forming chamber constructed within the baler. The pick-up assembly has a pick-up drive mechanism that operates to activate both the pick-up and the conveying rotor. The pick-up drive mechanism is operably connected to and driven by the main drive mechanism of the baler.
One drawback of the conventional pick-up drive mechanism is that it can only rotate the rotor in a single direction, being the xe2x80x9cconveying directionxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cnormal operating direction.xe2x80x9d The conveying direction of rotation is the direction of rotor rotation that moves cut crop material from the pick-up to the bale forming chamber. During operation of the pick-up assembly, impaction of the rotor with cut crop material has been known to occur. When the rotor becomes impacted, a wad or plug of cut crop material wedges itself between the rotor and the rotor housing. Once impacted, the rotor jams and fails to rotate properly. Consequently, the pick-up drive mechanism stops, which cause the baler""s main drive mechanism to stop, and the baler stalls. To remedy the situation and clear the rotor of impacted cut crop material, the baler operator must perform a rotor disimpaction procedure that involves (a) stopping the tractor pulling the baler and dismounting, (b) using a tool to manually de-clutch the rotor from the baler""s drive mechanisms, (c) physically rotating the rotor in the direction that is the reverse of the conveying direction to remove the impacted cut crop material, and (d) re-clutching the rotor before remounting the tractor and continuing normal operation of the baler.
For this reason, it is an object of the present invention to automate the rotor disimpaction procedure by providing the pick-up drive mechanism with a reverse control apparatus that includes a hydraulic cylinder mounted to the baler frame, wherein the hydraulic cylinder is connected to be operated from the tractor, and the hydraulic cylinder is connected to the pick-up drive mechanism so as to de-clutch the rotor drive, rotate the rotor in the reverse direction to the normal operating direction to effect rotor disimpaction, then re-clutch the rotor to resume rotation in the normal operating direction.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up drive assembly having a reverse control apparatus that permits automation of the rotor disimpaction procedure that maintains the advantages of the prior art baler devices while overcoming the disadvantages of the prior art machines.
A still further object of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art baler devices.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a baler with a controllable pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up drive assembly having a reverse control apparatus, which serves to selectively rotate the rotor in the reverse direction thereby automating the rotor disimpaction procedure.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a baler with a controllable pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up drive assembly having a reverse control apparatus that is controlled from a tractor pulling the baler.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a baler with a controllable pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up assembly having a reverse control apparatus that is practical and cost effective to manufacture.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a baler with a controllable pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up drive assembly having a reverse control apparatus that is both durable and reliable.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a baler with a controllable pick-up drive mechanism that is characterized by a pick-up drive assembly that is easy to maintain.
In accordance with the above objectives, a first embodiment of the present invention provides a baler having a baler frame, a main drive assembly that includes a starter roll drive shaft mounted to rotate in a first direction on the baler frame, and a pick-up assembly connected to the baler frame, the pick-up assembly having a reverse control apparatus for a conveying rotor and further characterized by: (a) a pick-up frame assembly connected to the baler frame; (b) a pick-up rotatably connected to the pick-up frame assembly; (c) a conveying rotor rotatably connected to the pick-up frame assembly; and (d) a pick-up drive assembly disposed on the pick-up frame assembly and connected to drive both the pick-up and the rotor, wherein the pick-up drive assembly comprises: (i) a rotatable first drive wheel disposed on the starter roll drive shaft; (ii) a clutch assembly operably connected to the first drive wheel, the clutch assembly having a first selective position to rotatingly engage the first drive wheel with the starter roll drive shaft and a second selective position to disengage the first drive wheel from the starter roll drive shaft; (iii) the reverse control apparatus comprising a hydraulic cylinder having a stroke with a first retracted position and a second extended position, the hydraulic cylinder connected at a first end to the pick-up frame assembly and connected at a second end to the clutch assembly, wherein when the hydraulic cylinder is in the second extended position the clutch assembly is in the second selective position, and when the hydraulic cylinder is in the first retracted position the clutch assembly is in the first selective position; and (iv) a second drive wheel rotatably connected to the pick-up frame assembly, the second drive wheel being connected to the first drive wheel by a flexible drive member so as to rotate in the first direction when the first drive wheel rotates in the first direction, and the second drive wheel is connected to rotate the rotor in a second direction, wherein the second drive wheel is connected to the second end of the hydraulic cylinder so as to rotate in a third direction that is the reverse of the first direction when the hydraulic cylinder is in the second extended position so that the second drive wheel rotates the rotor in a fourth direction that is the reverse of the second direction.
In accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention, the first embodiment is further modified so that the hydraulic cylinder moves from the first retracted position to the second extended position in response to a signal from a remote switch on a tractor connected to the baler.
In accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention, the first embodiment is further modified so that the reverse control apparatus further comprises a ratchet wheel attached to the second drive wheel so as to rotate therewith and the second end of the hydraulic cylinder is connected to a movable arm member that carries a ratchet wheel engaging dog member, wherein the ratchet wheel engaging dog member engages teeth of the ratchet wheel so as to effect rotation of the second drive wheel only in the third direction.
In accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention, the third embodiment is further modified so that the dog member has an edged portion and the teeth of the ratchet wheel are sloped so that the edge portion securely engages one of the teeth when hydraulic cylinder moves from the first retracted position to the second extended position.
In accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention, the fourth embodiment is further modified so that the reverse control apparatus further comprises a cam plate connected by a bar to the dog member, the pivot shaft being pivotally mounted on the arm member by a pivot shaft so that the cam plate and the dog member pivot on the pivot shaft as a single unit.
In accordance with a sixth embodiment of the present invention, the fifth embodiment is further modified so that the reverse control apparatus further comprises a biasing spring connected at one end to the arm member and at another end to the cam plate so as to bias the cam plate to rotate the dog member to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel.
In accordance with a seventh embodiment of the present invention, the sixth embodiment is further modified so that the reverse control apparatus further comprises a roller disposed on a support arm so that when the hydraulic cylinder moves into the first retracted position the roller engages the cam plate and the cam plate rotates on the pivot shaft so as to move the dog member out of engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel.
In accordance with an eighth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the third embodiment is further modified so that the clutch assembly includes a second link member connected at one end to a second cam member of the clutch assembly and at another end to the arm member.
In accordance with a ninth embodiment of the present invention, the eighth embodiment is further modified so that the clutch assembly includes a first link member connected at one end to the baler frame and at another end to a first cam member of the clutch assembly.
In accordance with a tenth embodiment of the present invention, the ninth embodiment is further modified so that the first cam member provides a bearing for a rotatable first jaw member that is disposed on the starter roll drive shaft, wherein the first jaw member is attached to rotate with the first drive wheel, and the second cam member provides a bearing for a rotatable second jaw member, wherein the second jaw member is disposed on the starter roll drive shaft and has teeth to matingly engage teeth of the first jaw member.
In accordance with an eleventh embodiment of the present invention, the tenth embodiment is further modified so that the second link member moves the second cam member when the hydraulic cylinder moves between the first retracted position and the second extended position respectively, simultaneously the second cam member moves the second jaw member between a first engaging position and a second non-engaging position, wherein the second jaw member matingly engages and rotates the first jaw member when in the first engaging position and the second jaw member is disengaged from the first jaw member when in the second non-engaging position.
In accordance with a twelfth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first embodiment is further modified so that the second drive wheel is disposed on a rotatable gear support shaft mounted on the pick-up frame assembly, wherein the second drive wheel rotates the gear support shaft, and a third gear is also disposed to rotate with the gear support shaft, and the rotor is disposed to rotate on a rotatable rotor drive shaft mounted to the pick-up frame assembly, and a fourth gear is disposed to rotate on the rotor drive shaft, wherein the third gear engages the fourth gear so as to rotate the fourth gear, the rotor drive shaft and the rotor when the second drive wheel rotates the third gear.
Further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments, which follows, when considered together with the attached drawings.